For Shiekh Ahmed Amir, this is his seventh pilgrimage to Pandharpur. He has been ferrying warkaris in his truck from his home district of Parbhani to Alandi for the Pandharpur yatra since 2003. From Alandi, he either walks with the warkaris or drives the truck with their luggage.

A driver at a sugar factory in Parbhani, Amir (36) takes a month off to travel with the warkaris — something he does out of belief. “I believe in both Ram and Rahim. I was very poor when I began travelling with the warkaris. Since I started participating in the wari, I have been doing better,” Amir said.

In Parbhani, Amir raises many eyebrows by working as a Shiv Sainik. “People are surprised to see me doing this. I believe in the Sena, just as I believe in the warkaris.”

He has a photo of Uddhav Thackeray on his cellphone, though he has never spoken to any of the Thackerays. “I treat them as my gurus,” he said.

A devout Muslim, Amir offers namaz five times a day. “But during the wari, it becomes difficult, but I try to offer prayers as many times as possible,” he said. He is the only member of his family and, perhaps, his community in Parbhani who actively participates in the wari.

Having grown up in Maharashtra, travelling with warkaris comes naturally to him, he said. It was Amir’s boss who first took him to Pandharpur. “We were more like friends than co-workers. On my first trip, I prayed for my own house, promising that I would come here every year,” he said.

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